


Temporal Cores and Leopard Seals

by chillydown



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-14
Updated: 2017-10-14
Packaged: 2019-01-17 10:58:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,046
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12364233
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chillydown/pseuds/chillydown
Summary: A missing scene, set sometime in series 10, vaguely before “The Eaters of Light.” A Trick or Treat 2017 request for ruuger, who requested “The Doctor is incapacitated and [insert Twelve's companion of choice] has to save the day and him”. Featuring Bill saving the Doctor from a scenario that’s a little too James Bond for both of their tastes. Mostly Bill & the Doctor, but Nardole shows up at the end.





	Temporal Cores and Leopard Seals

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Ruuger](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ruuger/gifts).



As the Doctor sat strapped to a chair, listening to the hum of the temporal bomb beneath the trapdoor in the floorboards, he couldn’t help think that all in all, this was a little cliche. Waking up after being knocked unconscious? Tied to a chair? Bomb in the floor underneath the chair, making ominous scary whirring noises? Hidden away in a warehouse? Having just listened to the baddie monologue about ooh, you’re never going to get away with this for the past five minutes? When was the last time something ridiculous like this happened? The 1970s? Or was it the 1980s? The point is, he hasn’t been stuck in stupid cliche nonsense like this for at least six or so regenerations. And besides, half those times it was Jo Grant or one of those UNIT boys strapped to a chair instead of him.

Of course, most of the times that Jo was strapped to a chair, she’d manage to pick the lock or wriggle herself loose a few minutes later. But any escapology skills the Doctor had, he’d forgotten at least a few regenerations ago.

The bomb in the floor was a little overkill, though. There’s trying to be a dangerous baddie and then there’s taking your playbook straight out of a James Bond film—and not even one of the good ones, one of those rubbish ones like the one with the leopard seal!

He’s certain one of the James Bond films had a leopard seal. Or, at least, one of the James Bond films _would_ have a leopard seal. It’s as the Doctor’s distracted, mulling over which film had that seal in the first place (it wasn't _Live and Let Die,_ that one had crocodiles) he almost misses the door slightly creak open.

"Doctor?" A familiar voice asks. It’s Bill, sticking her head in the room, cautiously looking around as if she expects some sort of terror to jump out from one of the warehouse corners.

“Bill!" he responds, absolutely relieved...which then turns to absolute terror as she takes a step towards the warehouse. "No no no, stop right there, do not move a muscle except if that muscle is moving your foot back to the doorway."

Very cautiously, Bill does so, giving the Doctor a look of slightly confusion. "Okay. Because I was _going_ to get you out of there, but—"

"There’s a bomb in the floorboards."

The conversation comes to a pause. The Doctor can’t help but look a little impatient as Bill looks to floor, then to the Doctor, then back to the floor as if she’ll somehow be able to physically see the bomb underneath the floorboards if she stares at it long enough. Unsurprisingly, she doesn’t see it.

"Hang on then,” Bill remarks. Pausing a little, she points at the ground. “If the bomb’s in the floor, then how’d he put it in the first place?"

"Bill, I really don’t think this is the time—" But she cuts in again, ignoring him with a frown as she starts to piece the puzzle out.

"It’s under the floorboards, yeah? So he had to have set you up there with the trap set up already. You can’t tie someone up on a chair if there isn’t a floor for the chair to sit on.” And so, Bill continues, frown turning into a wide grin as she puts more and more of the pieces together. “The bad guy places the traps, puts the trapdoor down, sets you up, monologues a bit, blah blah blah you won’t escape this Doctor, I’m going to kill yoooou," she pulls a particularly ridiculous face here, causing the Doctor to bite down on his cheek to keep from laughing, "and then _after_ the monologue, he leaves the room and finds a way to turn the bomb on remotely—”"

"So that I’m the one stuck here, and he isn’t blown to bits." The Doctor gives Bill a wide grin. Wonderful Bill, clever Bill, smart enough Bill to figure out a way to help him out of this! "Of course! There’s got to be a way to turn the bomb on and off. Once we find that, the temporal core can be deactivated and off we go."

Moments like this, the Doctor couldn't help but reflect, were amazing. The two of them working together, almost in tandem, as if two halves of a whole, finishing each other's ideas and plans. He can't remember the last time he had someone like this. Or, at least, he can't remember the last time _this_ him had someone like this. The Doctor's wide grin is infectious, as Bill starts grinning as well.

Of course, the problem here is they need to turn the bombs off before removing the core. Without even realizing it, the Doctor slips into a lecture, explaining the concept before they go to the practical, like it’s just another day at uni and not something life-threatening. "Temporal bombs are notoriously finicky and even more notoriously dangerous to Time Lords. They’re powered by a core of compressed anti-time—"

"Seriously?" she adds in, unimpressed.

"Yes, seriously, I know the name’s stupid but that’s what it is. The core needs a continual flow of power. The crudest method is wiring it up to the electric power. That’s probably what Blofeld over here’s done," said with a little scoff, trying to drastically underplay the fact that he’s sitting on a chair, tied up, with a bomb specifically crafted to kill him underneath the trapdoor beneath him."

"I saw a breaker box outside," said as she points towards what the Doctor assumes is the outside of the building with her thumb. "Cut the power, cut the bomb."

"Or at least cut the power, cut off energy to the bomb. You’ll still have to defuse it yourself.:

Bill shrugs, trying to give off the impression that defusing a bomb is a perfectly normal thing that she’s done plenty of times, not only done once in some terrible video game one of her mates made her play. "Sounds simple enough. Be right back, yeah?" And with a nod towards the Doctor, she runs off. It’s only a ten second or so wait, long enough for the Doctor to marvel at really, just how incompetent was Blofeld anyway, why put him somewhere he could easily break out of (with help, of course) before the lights are cut and the whirring sound underneath his feet sputters to a halt. And once again, Bill sticks her head back in the doorway, giving the Doctor a wide grin. Carefully, she puts one foot on the ground...and, way too relieved that neither she nor the Doctor were blown to bits, takes a few steps forward, walking towards the Doctor.

"Marvelous!" he exclaims. "Now, scoot my chair back a little so you can access the trapdoor. Open it and take the bomb out."

The Doctor’s scooted back with only mild annoyance from Bill. Really, he's too skinny for her complaining to actually take effect even if she wanted to razz him about this in the first place. She bends down, opens the trapdoor...and then immediately winces as she looks over the bomb. It’s a giant mess of different colored wires connected to something crystal-like in a way that’s far too impressive and way too dangerous-looking. Said crystal-like object is flashing bright red, which probably adds to the whole dangerous thing. "Right," Bill sighs, trying to pep herself up and reassure herself as much as the Doctor. Defusing a bomb. No big. "What do I do first?"

With utter certainty, the Doctor replies, "Pull out the red wire on both ends."

There’s a long pause. "That’s it?"

"That’s it," the Doctor responds, with a shrug. "Should there be more?"

Bill just gives him a disbelieving frown. Well okay, if that’s it, then that’s it. Apparently temporal bombs are notoriously dumb as well as notoriously finicky. As she gingerly removes the red wire, Bill can’t help but raise an eyebrow. "Y’know, normally with you it’s all _Star Trek._ Fun space aliens, going to the future, things like that. But this? It’s James Bond."

"I know!" the Doctor responds, with exasperation, rolling his eyes to the heavens. "And not even good James Bond either. It’s Christopher Walken or leopard seals James Bond.'

As Bill finishes pulling out the red wire, the crystal visibly changes color, going from a bright shining red to something more dull. Almost instantly, a feeling of relief spreads through the room as Bill just sighs in relief. Defusing a bomb. Right, perfectly normal, she’s got this. Just another day in the life of Bill Potts, space traveler and bomb defuser. She continues talking as she gingerly removes the temporal core, which turns out to be the crystalline object that now feels oddly cool in her hands.

"One, the one with Christopher Walken is a good James Bond." And not just because of Grace Jones, who had a surprisingly large influence on Bill’s preteen psyche. As she carefully sets the temporal core on the ground, Bill goes to work at untying the Doctor’s feet from the chair. Bit silly isn’t this, big fancy Time Lord with his big fancy space ship, doesn’t have a gadget to undo knots. "Two, there’s not one with leopard seals. You’re thinking of sharks."

"Bill, I know my rubbish James Bond movies," the Doctor complains, as he unintentionally slips into a bit of a pedantic tone. "Had tea with Roger Moore once, we complained about sports the entire time. And there’s definitely one with the leopard seals. And, like I said, it’s rubbish."

"Might I remind you two," a familiar voice huffs, "that while you’re sitting here talking about leopard seals, Lord Carlix is probably halfway across the galaxy by now?" Both Bill and the Doctor turn to look at the door. There stands Nardole, walking into the room, giving both Bill and the Doctor an annoyed glare in the process. "I’ve moved the TARDIS outside, by the way. You could have _told_ me where you parked her."

"Lord Carlix?" the Doctor replies, with a confusion that may or may not be genuine. Nevertheless, it has it’s intended result as Bill bites down on her lip to keep from laughing and Nardole gives both of them a particularly disgruntled look. Bill takes that moment to swap to untying the Doctor’s wrists but keeps quiet and doesn’t butt into the conversation. It's certainly not because she wants to hear the Doctor and Nardole go at it, why d'you think that.

"The one who set up the temporal bomb in the first place? You kept calling him Blofeld," he remarks, as dryly as possible.

"Oh yes, that person! Well that should be easy." As Bill finishes undoing the knots, the ropes fall to the floor. The Doctor stands up, rubs at his wrists, and there’s a brief moment where he indulges in Nardole’s exasperated expression before he continues. "There's only a few places in the universe where you can buy compressed anti-time like this. We'll pop over there, sneak a peek at their ledgers, see where Lord Carlix lives, then pop over to his place and pay him a visit. It’ll take what, one, two hours at the most?"

"And you can do it that fast?" Bill asks, with a slightly skeptical raise of her eyebrow, taking this moment to pick up the crystalline core.

"Course I can do it that fast," the Doctor remarks, as he picks up the rest of the bomb, awkwardly propping it up on his hip. "I'm the Doctor, I can do anything."

"Except handle compressed anti-time," Nardole responds, as he walks towards the door. Both the Doctor and Bill get the inference: stop talking, get a move on, and let's go ahead and find this person. "And it's komodo dragons you're thinking of. There’s never been a James Bond with leopard seals."

"Not yet there hasn't," the Doctor remarks, as the three start to head back to the TARDIS. He can't help but look over at Nardole and Bill, a grumpy bickering alien and a bright sparkling example of humanity. His best friends in the universe. "I think that after all this nonsense is sorted out, we're overdue a movie night."


End file.
